Brotherhood
by MrLRocks78
Summary: When Luigi and Herobrine are brainwashed into doing evil's bidding, Mario and Notch have to join forces in order to get their brothers back. But what parts do Mr. L and Dimentio play in this twisted game? Rating may change.
1. A Reckless Luigi

"Mario!"

The green-clad plumber's yell reached its way up the wooden staircase and into where it was due for - Mario's room. However, the hero refused to answer the call. Annoyed, Luigi stomped up the stairs, causing as much noise as he could on purpose.

When he reached the landing, he strode right up the hall and towards his brother's room. The landing was kind of blank, with simple wooden floorboards and three doors. One led to the bathroom, one to Luigi's room and one to Mario's. The last two were marked with a red "M" for Mario, and a green "L" for Luigi.

Luigi went up to the M-marked door and hammered on the wood. A few seconds later, the brass doorknob turned, and a face with sapphire-blue eyes identical to Luigi's popped out, wearing an annoyed expression, one that was equally countered by Luigi's firm glance.

"I was sleeping," muttered Mario, running a white-gloved hand through his messy brown hair.

"Mario, you _know _Peach wanted us at the Castle!" scolded Luigi, folding his arms.

"I know," grumbled Mario. "But I was sleeping."

"Yeah, so?"

Mario said nothing. He simply turned around and slammed the door in his younger brother's face. An almost indistinguishable "I'll get changed" was heard, coupled with some scuffling sounds and muttered curses.

Grumbling himself, Luigi walked downstairs.

The relationship between the Mario Brothers had been dangerously rocky ever since a few weeks ago. Unable to stand yet another spotlight shined on his heroic older brother, Luigi had gotten into a full-out brawl with Mario... in front of kingdom-wide TV. Luigi, who was constantly overshadowed, had recently been brainwashed into attempting to kill his brother, not to mention Princess Peach - the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom - and Bowser - the highly disliked Koopa King.

Obviously, Luigi's already-low popularity had dropped. Understandibly, Luigi presently felt very spiteful towards his brother, and to Peach and the entire kingdom as well.  
Luigi tore open the fridge and selected a large tub of "SuperSmooth" ice cream. He opened the lid, picked up an abandoned spoon on the small wooden table, and dug into the chocolate-vanilla swirl.

He devoured it in minutes, and when he looked up, realised that he had forgotten to close the fridge door. Swearing loudly, he slammed the door shut, much like how Mario had slammed the door in _his _face so very recently.

The force of the door sent a precious china plate on top of the fridge tumbling to the floor. With an ear-splitting _crash_, the plate splintered. Staring at the white and blue fragments, trembling with self-induced rage, Luigi went over to the straw broom in a corner and swept up the pieces.

Afterwards, he scooped them all up and deposited them in the bin. Out of the corner of his eye, Luigi realised a golden glint.

Whirling around, Luigi approached the fridge again, the back of it being where he had spotted the glint. In the old days, he would have immediately called upon his brother, knowing full well himself that he was very timid, up to the point of being called a coward. However, in the light of the present days, calling his brother seemed unfaceable. And anyway, being faced with the prospect of handling with the press every time he went out for a walk, a new kind of bravery had found its way into Luigi's heart. But it was cold, foolhardy and reckless... three traits a very talented and experienced antagonist can bend to their advantage.

The younger brother bent down to peer behind the fridge. When he saw nothing, he reached out a hand to grab the thing that caused the glint. He immediately found something long and rough clutched in his hand. He withdrew the said hand and looked at it.

A scroll. An aged, yellowed piece of parchment, sealed with a golden sort of symbol. The said symbol was two swords crossed, behind them a Mushroom. Awed, Luigi opened the scroll and read the following words:

_Dear Luigi Vyn,_

_Ah! How long we have waited for this glorious moment! We, the legendary race of people called the Ex, have finally come to the grand decision of letting you - yes, you! - grant yourself your deepest wish: power! How dare those ignorant fools of the Mushroom Kingdom shun you like the Koopas? You should be respected! Someone with fine talent like you deserves our attention! If you accept our offer of power and respect, please leave a single drop of blood on the seal and leave it at the west outskirts of Boo Woods. We will be there to accept your reply._

~The Ex~

Luigi stood there, holding the miraculous paper in his hands. Power! Respect! No two things could have swayed him more. Without hesitation, Luigi strode over to the kitchen drawer and pulled out a silver knife. The soft glow emitting from the light bounced off its blade, making it shine and shimmer. Smiling, a little more widely than usual, Luigi put the scroll down on the counter, held out his left hand, and pierced his thumb on the said hand.

The pain shot through his body. However, he wasn't troubled by it at all. In fact, he felt... happiness? Eagerness? It was hard to tell. But the blood as it leaked out... what a beautiful sight!

Wait... WHAT?

"Luigi, Luigi," chuckled the green-clad plumber, picking up the scroll. "You _are _certainly getting ahead of yourself these days! Ah hah hah!"

Luigi wiped his blood-soaked thumb on the seal. It immediately glowed red, and absorbed the blood like a sponge sucks up water. After a few seconds, the seal dulled, and returned to its usual gold colour.

Still laughing softly to himself, Luigi walked calmly over to the door and opened it.

"Power... respect... let those fools who defy me rot in the Nether! Ah hah hah!"


	2. Mutant Creeper

It was a tranquil day in Minecraftia. The unseen birds were twittering, the chickens were laying eggs at a perfect pace, the cows were chatting to each other in their strange cow language, and the pigs were running around, happily getting some exercise. However, not everything was at peace.

Herobrine Jynques stormed off, diamond sword in hand. Notch, Herobrine's brother, had just started a very heated argument, one that had been used for years. Normally, it was just a chance for a laugh, something you could shake off spiteful feelings on. Now, however, the argument was for real. Very real.

"I don't understand why _I_can't go out anymore!" Herobrine had yelled.

"It's 'cause people think you're a _monster_!" Notch snapped.

"Ohh, am I a monster now, huh? That what you're sayin'?"

"YEAH! Maybe I AM!"

"Well then forget you! I'm leaving this Endforsaken biome! I've had _enough_! If you think I belong with the zombies and the skeletons and the spiders... FINE! Good-bye!"

And with that, Herobrine had stormed off. Now, you have most likely realised the difference between the Mario Bros. and Notch and Herobrine. Herobrine is considered a monster, far too infamous, while Luigi is practically the opposite: shunned, disrespected and forgotten.

As I have said before, a very well-experienced antagonist could bend these things to their advantage. But Luigi and Herobrine are alert and intelligent people, and will not be swayed by evil easily. Plus, even though Luigi may not look it, they are both very experienced fighters. Therefore, it would be hard to get them on evil's side.

But, alas, you have read the summary. And anyway, fate's hand is far too strong to be defeated by anything. Anything.

Herobrine stalked through the biome, mountains rising up around him, farm animals bleating and clucking and mooing and snorting. He slashed angrily at a nearby pig, who squealed and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Herobrine picked up the pork the animal had left behind, and took to nibbling on it uninterestedly.

Soon, he came across a dark cave. Grumbling to himself, he made his way inside. He put up some torches, and realised that the cave was, in fact, a thirty-by-thirty square. Perfect. Plenty of room to stretch out.

Herobrine set to work, getting out a full sixty-four stack of cobblestone and sealing up the gaping mouth. Once he was finished, he punched out a block and replaced it with a glass pane. Stepping back to admire his work, he accidentally knocked into one of his torches, and it flew off the wall.

The room immediately dimmed. Swearing, Herobrine picked up the torch and replaced it on the back wall. That's when a sparkle caught his eye. A familiar sparkle...

"Diamond!" grinned Herobrine, switching to his diamond pickaxe eagerly. The young man raised his pick to mine, and set to work. Soon enough, he had broken through the diamond. However, no diamond fell out. Herobrine swore again, convinced that his brother had planted the "diamond" there.

"Freaking idiot Notch! He deserves to burn in the Nether, with a Ghast eating his ass, and a - huh?"

A scroll, identical to Luigi's, fell out of the fake diamond block. Curious, Herobrine unrolled it. It read exactly the same as Luigi's, except that it bore Herobrine's name, and it said to leave the scroll, with its tribute of blood, outside the abandoned mineshaft to the west. Plus, it talked about giving Notch and the other Minecraftians their come-uppance instead of respect. However, power was there... present as always...

Grinning, though he had no idea why, Herobrine switched to his sword and slashed his arm without hesitance. Blood trickled onto the seal, and it glowed red, before returning to gold.

The slash slowly faded, seeing as Herobrine was not in the least bit hungry. The young man started pacing back and forth in the cave, rubbing his fists together in order to try and work off some of the excess energy he felt.

"Come-uppance... punishment..." he hissed to himself. "Hee-hee! Thisssss isssss perfect!"

Herobrine stopped. He frowned at himself. "Why did I lisp?"

After a while, the young man shrugged it off. "I must be tired..."

He pulled out a bed and placed it down. He climbed into the said bed, and shut his eyes as sleep washed over him. But there was no washing off the insane smile that lit his features...

* * *

Notch paced back and forth, just like his brother. His brow was furrowed and he was biting his lip nervously. Behind him, a portal to the Nether hissed and spat. Notch was tempted... so tempted... to just grab his diamond pick and mine furiously at the freaking thing, until its hisses were silenced forever. But he knew he couldn't.

"This is one shitty mess you have yourself in, Notchy," muttered Notch, pulling his iconic black fedora down to his eyebrows. His loyal pets, Blade the wolf and Scythe the black tuxedo cat, sat there, following his movements with their heads.

"I mean, what the Ender were you thinking, sending him off like that?" continued Notch, his bottom lip beginning to draw blood.

"Rrrrruff!" growled Blade, sensing his owner's agitation and anger rising from him (Notch) like heat.

"Mrrrow," said Scythe, washing himself.

"You're right," agreed Notch, turning around. "I should suck it up. He'll come back, he always does."

"That'ssssss a nice diamond pick you got there... it'd be a shame if ssssssomething were to happen to it..."

Notch gaped at the creeper. It wasn't green, but jet-black, with a red glowing mouth and pair of eyes.

"G-get away from me, bastard!" yelled Notch, drawing his sword. "Blade, Scythe! Attack!"

But Blade was backing away, whimpering. Scythe was yowling, his fur standing up.

"Those petsssss aren't going to do you any good," smirked the mutant creeper. "Not at all..."


	3. A New World

Notch's sword moved so fast it was a blur. The mutant creeper gave a shriek of anguish as its head was slashed off from its body. Scarlet blood gushed from its head and body. Notch backed away quickly, expecting the blood and creeper to disappear in a puff of smoke, just like a normal dead mob. However, instead of disappearing, the creeper slowly faded.

The sword-wielding human backed away, his eyes wide with terror and shock, his sword spattered with blood. Blade and Scythe were howling and mewling frantically.

The creeper's eyes glowed red, and for a minute, Notch thought that the creeper would respawn and attack him. But it simply faded, along with its blood. Only a faint lisp remained in the air, but it still chilled Notch to the bone. Whining, Blade ran behind Notch and stayed there, tail between his legs, Scythe accompanying him.

"What the freaking Ender..." whispered Notch.

He took a few stumbling steps backwards, then suddenly regained himself, and sprinted away as fast as he could. What the freaking heck WAS that thing? Was it from the unknown dimension from which Endermen spawned? Was it from The End? Was it even a living creature? Was it a robot? Was it a...

Notch didn't have any time to think about the creeper after that, for he was suddenly thrown, head-first, by an invisible force into a golden, pulsating portal.

"AAAAAARGH!" yelled Notch.

He was spinning, turning, twisting, bouncing, running, flying, swimming, walking... All around him was a swirling mass of gold, twisted images flickering in and out like a badly-tuned television. Notch yelled and felt for the exit, for this must be a sort of portal just like a Nether Portal... right? You could get out any time... right?

No, he could not. Notch twisted and turned, only dimly aware of his loyal pets, who had followed him into the portal. Now, Scythe was clawing at Notch's leg, Blade was howling louder than ever, and all the while, Notch was played with by the almighty force of the portal...

And then it stopped, and he was just floating in a golden, pulsing place, his wolf and cat suddenly quiet.

After a few stunned minutes, Notch found that he could move around in the portal just like swimming. He pulled himself through the golden swirling mass, using his arms to propel himself. Blade followed him, doggy-paddling. Scythe simply clung onto Notch's leg.

As he travelled through the portal, he saw glimpses... glimpses of a different world, a different dimension. He saw mushroom-like people. He saw upright turtle things and enlarged brown mushrooms with short, stubby legs and a face. He saw four humans, two male, two female. He saw green pipes. He saw cloud-like platforms.

He didn't know it at the time, but Notch was seeing the Mushroom Kingdom for the first time.

Notch reached out for the green-pipe picture. Once his fingers touched the illusion, he was sucked into a world most unlike his own.

* * *

"D'you think he's okay?"

"Uh, lemme think about that. Hm... NO!"

"He sure took quite a fall."

"I hope he doesn't die."

"What if he _did_?"

"Would the police come here?"

"Of course they won't!"

"Ahem. If I may be so prudent to interrupt, he appears to be waking up."

The voices silenced immediately. Notch groaned, and slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was a purple-and-yellow jester, with a mask for a face.

"WHAT THE FU - "

"Shut the freakin' hell up, dude!" exclaimed one of the voices. "D'you wanna get killed?"

"It's not like we're hiding from a zombie apocalypse or anything," sneered another voice.

"Don't worry," soothed a nearby woman, with long brown hair and a rainbow-coloured dress. "There's no zombies here."

"Really?" exclaimed Notch, startled. "There's tons of zombies from where I come from."

There was a sharp intake of breath. Notch looked towards the sound, and saw a young girl, about sixteen, wearing a green shirt and brown pants. She whispered something in another girl's ear, the latter girl having green pigtails and wearing a polka-dot dress. The latter girl's eyes widened, and she took a few hasty steps backwards.

_What's up with these people? _Notch thought. _It's like they've never even seen a zombie._

"Where're you from?" demanded a mask-wearing man, wearing a cap and a bandanna around the neck. "What's your name? Why'd you come here?"

"Shut up, L," snapped a muscly Scotsman with a bristly brown beard.

There was a rustle of feathers, and Notch was shocked to see two black wings protruding from L's shoulder blades.

"Uh, guys?" said yet another girl, who had pink hair and cat-like glasses. "I think we should leave this guy with the Count and the Lady, 'K?"

There was much grumbling at this, but the others heeded the girl's command, turning around and trooping out of the room. The girl followed them, looking back as she exited. The door shut with a 'snap'.

"I'm truly sorry for that extremely rude awakening," apologised what happened to be the Count. He had dark-blue skin, and wore a monocle, top hat and cape. "My name is Count Blumiere. This is my wife, Lady Timpani. And, of course, you have met my minions."

"M-minions?" yelped Notch. Was this guy some sort of evil mastermind?

"I think we should introduce ourselves, and our land," smiled Timpani. "You do not come from here, and you have much to learn."

"Learn... about what?"

"About the Mushroom Kingdom."


	4. Two Heroes

And so, Notch, brother of Herobrine, admired throughout Minecraftia, discovered the Mushroom Kingdom.

He learned about Koopas and Goombas and Pirahna Plants and Buzzy Beetles and every other enemy in the Kingdom. He learned about the Mario Bros. and Sarasaland and the Beanbean Kingdom and the Overthere and the Underwhere and Queen Jaydes and Grambi and their daughter Luvbi and Warp Pipes and Toads and every other thing in the Kingdom.

It took three days to fully educate the fedora-wearing human. In turn, he told tales about Minecraftia, about zombies and skeletons and creepers and Endermen and the Nether and the Overworld and The End and the Enderdragon and chickens and cows and sheep and pigs and obsidian and diamond and redstone and gold and iron and cobblestone and coal and dirt and clay and squid and his brother and every other thing in Minecraftia.

Notch made friends, too. L Thunder, O'Chunks McSmith, Dimentio Scurra and Blumiere Evene were the males. Raven Featherclaw, Nastasia Axle, Mimi Denova and Timpani Evene were the females.

And so, for many weeks, Notch lived at Castle Bleck, laughing and having fun with the minions, and studying the Kingdom with the Evene couple. But not a day passed without Notch wondering about his brother, wondering if he had returned, and wondering if his brother still loved him.

**THREE MONTHS LATER...**

It was a full season after Notch's return that danger reared its ugly head again. It was September, the beginning of Spring. Flowers were bursting into bloom, the southern birds were heading for the Kingdom, and the last of the snow was melting. Farming would start up again soon, and Raven was eagerly awaiting the birth of many new animals in Misery Forest.

For Notch, it was a special month, for he would be finally meeting the hero known kingdom-wide... Mario Vyn. He didn't dress particularly carefully, nor did he frantically assume that horrors would take place. In fact, he paid little heed to the aspect of meeting the hero. Mario had heard of him, and so was coming to Castle Bleck, as opposed to the other way round.

The present date - and the date of Mario's arrival - was September the 17th. Notch was conversing with L, Raven and Dimentio about what Mario's most likely attitude towards him would be, and, in turn, what _his _attitude should be.

"Act cool," L said immediately. "Y'know, laid-back, calm, don't really listen much, that kinda thing."

Raven immediately pushed L aside. "No way! That's _mean_! No, whatcha gotta act like is yourself. THAT'S what always appeals."

"Decide for yourself," sighed Dimentio. "I really couldn't care less."

An hour or so later, the doorbell rang. Nastasia had installed a doorbell a few weeks before, annoyed of the sudden drop-ins of the mailkoopa. The actual chime was the default "bing-bong", though, nothing special or unique or fancy. O'Chunks, who happened to be passing by said door at the time, flung it open and came face-to-face with Mario Vyn.

"Maria!" grinned O'Chunks. He knew the red-clad plumber's name, but used the female version to annoy said plumber.

"Hey, Chunks," replied Mario, smiling. "So, where's this 'Notch' guy?"

" 'E's just down 'ere. Follow me."

* * *

"Wow," said Mario, as he and Notch walked down the corridor. "Pretty awesome-sounding place, Minecraftia."

"Yeah," replied Notch. "It's super-different from this world, though."

"I agree," grinned Mario, eying Notch's right hand, which had his diamond sword clutched in it. "Not many people in the Kingdom are paranoid enough to always carry a sword with them."

Notch had admitted to Mario about keeping his sword on his bedside table at night. However, he was surprisingly unfazed.

"You can never be too careful in Minecraftia," he said. "Unless you have an iron door, zombies can kick your door down."

"Uh... huh," said Mario. He was still new to the whole zombies-are-really-common-in-Minecraftia concept.

"NOTCH!" yelled a familiar voice that echoed down the corridor. "MARIO! MAJOR TROUBLE AT PEACH'S CASTLE!"

Notch and Mario whirled around to come face-to-face with a terrified-looking Raven and an airborne L.

"What was that about the trouble, and the Castle?" frowned Mario.

"THIS DEVIL GUY THINGY IS ATTACKING!" screamed Raven, flapping her arms and running around in circles. L grabbed the back of her sash and held her steady.

"Quit acting like some headless chicken!" scolded L. He then turned to Notch and Mario. "The dude has short brown hair, a blue shirt, and white eyes."

Notch froze.

"D-did you just say... _white eyes_?" yelped the fedora-wearer.

"Uh, yeah," said L, frowning. "Why? What's up?"

Notch turned to Mario. "Listen, there isn't time to explain. Just trust me when I say... DON'T HARM HIM!"

And with those words, Notch turned around and practically flew down the corridor, sword raised.

"We're coming too!" shouted Raven and L, and raced after Notch.

After a few seconds standing still, Mario suddenly regained himself and summoned his Firebrand ability. "Wait for me!"

* * *

The scene of devastation was horrible. Half of Peach's Castle was blown apart, revealing the screaming and panicking Toads inside. Toad houses were burning or burnt, and abandoned children ran around the houses, crying for their mothers. Blood and flesh was scattered everywhere, as well as dead Toad corpses. Fire enveloped and ate at everything flammable, but this was unlike fire anyone had seen. Instead of fading or shrinking, it simply stayed where it was shot.

The devil that had caused this was standing on the battlements of the Castle, which had been set on fire. His cyan shirt was torn, and a bloody slash ran down from his left eye to his right cheek. His eyes were white, but blazed with relish at the destruction.

Herobrine had risen. And he had come to take revenge.


	5. Curiousity

_Author's Note: Sorry for the late uploads! Writer's block struck, and HARD. Could not pick up a pen for weeks! Anyhoot, I'm back. By the way, the moveset of the minions + Evene couple have changed. L is also now a shiny, winged Jolteon. Thanks to Luigi the Time Lord for suggesting that! Also, the gang might occasionally turn into Eeveelutions, but not much.  
_

"Take _this_! ASSURANCE!"

"Hya! That the best ya got? FLAMETHROWER!"

"GAAH!"

"Dimmy, you okay?"

The other inhabitants of Castle Bleck, oblivious to the crisis taking place outside, gathered around the KO'ed Dimentio. The Umbreon had swirls in his eyes, but at the sound of Mimi's cry, he struggled to stand. O'Chunks - as a Flareon - stood behind them, his face portraying arrogance and proud at defeating Dimentio after such a humiliating defeat a few days ago.

"I'm fine," assured the jester, his mouth twisting into a painful grimace.

"Well, all I can tell you is that you're, um, improving," informed Nastasia, pushing her glasses up a bit. "Keep it up, 'K? Love the enthusiasm."

"Thank you, Nastasia," smirked Dimentio.

"An' how 'bout me?" exclaimed O'Chunks.

"Well, you certainly have improved greatly, like a Level 1 suddenly gaining a burst of experience from a Level 40, the actual battling done by a Level 50."

"Whut's that s'posed ta mean?"

"That the actual battling done is by your determination to win."

"...Issat a compla-ment?"

"So and so."

"Ah."

Suddenly, the exchange of talk and the calm atmosphere was changed instantly, as L swooped into the room, his eyes wide with terror. The four opened thier mouths to ask questions, but at the same moment, a harassed and distressed-looking Raven flapped into the room as a crow. She was trembling, and instead of calmly preening herself before folding her wings, the said wings zoomed into their folded position faster than... well, it was hard to say, truthfully.

"Raven, what hap - "

But the forest girl pushed her way between Dimentio and Nastasia. L followed suit, his steps jerky and nervous. Once the two were out of sight, the four remaining looked at each other.

"What the heck was that all about?" exclaimed Mimi.

"They look like they've seen a ghost!" added Nastasia.

Dimentio, however, glanced towards the door. His scarlet eyes narrowed. O'Chunks noticed this, and rested a paw on Dimentio's shoulder. The Umbreon shook it off and made his way to the door. Placing a paw on an electronic pad L had installed a few weeks previously, the door opened smoothly, and Dimentio trotted inside.

* * *

As a jester, Dimentio made his way through Castle Bleck. The sun was going down, and he had heard rumours about a certain flying being, armed with a sword blackened by evil. Somehow, Dimentio made a connection between the attack and Notch, but he couldn't quite place a finger on it.

Absorbed in his thoughts, Dimentio - who was hovering barely an inch over the floor - almost tripped over a curled-up Scythe and a slumbering Blade. Smiling slightly, Dimentio went on his way. The two creatures, inexplainably tamed, had come with Notch. Remembering a curious little conversation that had taken place between himself and Notch last month, Dimentio let the waves of time wash him away for a few moments.

_"So, where did you find them? At a pet shop?"_

_"Um, no. In the forest. Well, that was where I found Blade, anyway. I found Scythe in a jungle."_

_"A... jungle, you say? Interesting... And, ah, what sort of breed is Blade?"_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"Like, what kind of dog is he?"_

_"What's a dog?"_

_"Um..."_

_"Blade's a wolf."_

_"Really? Well, that would explain a lot... Well, if they were once wild, how did you tame them?"_

_"With bones and fish, for Blade and Scythe respectively."_

_"Ri-ight..."_

With a slight shock, Dimentio found himself outside of Notch's room. He raised a fist to knock, but froze as he heard what was being muttered on the other side.

"Let's see... pickaxe, sword, bow and arrows, porkchops, armour, torches... anything else? Hmmm... maybe this _Guide to Mobs_book will come in handy... a few maps and a compass, too..."

Dimentio flung the door open. Notch, who was partially dressed in a white shirt and black fedora, whirled around. His legs and feet were encased in mint-coloured armour. He was holding what looked like a black arrowhead and a U-shaped bit of steel, except that the latter was hovering over the former, following it around as though it was connected by a firm iron branch.

"D-Dimentio!" stammered Notch, shutting a chest behind him. "W-why're you up so late?"

"It's seven p.m."

"R-really?" said Notch. "Th-that's a surprise."

"Been locked in here all day, hm?" inquired Dimentio, approaching the trembling miner.

"Ah, um, er, well, you see..."

"I do hope that you're not _going somewhere_." Even though his tone was light, the emphasis put on the last two words was dark and cold. Notch evidently realised, for he raised his mint-coloured sword, his eyes narrowed.

"D-don't come any closer!"

Dimentio chuckled at the feeble threat, and clicked his fingers carelessly. Notch was immediately surrounded by a magical cube-like barrier. Yelling with fright and shock, he tried to strike the shimmering forcefield, but to no avail.

"I suggest you stay put," advised Dimentio, and teleported out of the room without another word.


	6. Information At Last

"Notchy's running away?"

Everyone was gathered in the minion orientation room. The couple were holding each others' hands, looking worried. L's cap was pulled down over his eyes, clearly brooding. Raven, X, Xena and Bolt were conversing in low, animal noises. Nastasia kept fidgeting. O'Chunks kept clenching and unclenching his fists. Mimi was whimpering. And Dimentio, bringer of the bad news, was hovering a few inches off the ground, fighting to stay calm.

Mario was back at Peach's Castle, trying to stem the flow of destruction. Peach and Daisy, the latter staying at the Kingdom for a holiday, were safe, and were trying to track Herobrine. Mimi, who had broken the silence, looked down at the ground and blinked back tears as Dimentio nodded.

"I trapped him with magic, like a spider is trapped under a glass cup and over a piece of paper," murmured Dimentio.

"D'ya know anyt'in 'bout deh... demon t'ing?" asked O'Chunks.

"He seems to scare Notch," mused Dimentio.

"Oh dear," muttered Timpani. "I have a bad feeling about this..."

"Dimentio," said Count Blumiere loudly, "how did you feel when L and Raven described the demon to you?"

Surprised, Dimentio took a while to reply. Then...

"Evil."

"Evil, you say?"

"Yes."

"The Ex," said L quietly, making everyone stare at him.

"Uh, pardon, L?" said Nastasia.

"The Ex are behind this," explained the masked man. "They gotta be."

"Who're deh Ex?" frowned O'Chunks.

"A race," muttered Mr. L, "of evil. Shadow beasts, Subrideres, D-Mon, twisted spirits, the undead, Phantoms, rotten ghosts, dark elves, Chimaeras, evil animals, shadow dragons... if it glories in despair and fear, it's probably one of the Ex."

"How d'you know about these... mega-meanies?" whispered Mimi.

"They attacked us," said Raven unexpectedly. "L, Dimentio and I. We were... younger... when it happened. They attacked us, killed our families, tortured our friends. We managed to drive them away, but we've always feared..."

"That they'd come back," supplied Dimentio dully.

"We were there, with L, when it happened," added Bolt.

"Scariest thing I'd ever seen in my life," drawled Xena.

"I was with Raven," said X. "I almost died trying to protect her."

The Count looked, alarmed, at the three minions. He had never known, never bothered to find out...

"Is that why you're a, well, forest girl?" Nastasia asked Raven.

"Yeah," said Raven.

"And... you guys?" asked Mimi, looking at Mr. L and Dimentio.

"We ran away," explained L.

"We were... cowards, back then," added Dimentio.

"You aren't a coward, Dimmy!" exclaimed Mimi.

"Neither are you, L," assured O'Chunks.

"Nor you, Raven," added Nastasia.

"None of you are cowards," said Timpani.

"Yes," agreed Blumiere, "you are probably the bravest people we've ever met."

"That's comforting," muttered Raven.

"Remember Eevill?" asked Mimi. "Is he, y'know, one of the Ex?"

"Yeah," said L. "He's a mutation of an eel, a fish, and a bird. Kinda scary."

Dimentio shook his head. "It does not matter. What matters is that we get information out of Notch."

"We shouldn't all go, advised Count Blumiere. Who are the three most persuading people here?"

Everyone looked pointedly at L, Raven and Dimentio.

Looking wildly around, Raven frowned as she transformed back into a human. Nudging her, Mr. L spoke in an undertone. "Uh, I think he means us."

"We shall do our duty as best as we can," smirked Dimentio.

"Thank Grambi," muttered Raven, before Dimentio teleported them to Notch's room. "No similes."

* * *

"You want information."

It was not a question. It was a statement.

"Well," said Mr. L, "yeah."

Notch sighed, then pressed his hands against the magical barrier that held him. Then, head hanging down, he explained.

"Herobrine Vyn is my brother. We were having an argument, the day I met you guys. It was a... serious argument. It really hurt Brine's feelings, and he left. I told myself that he'd come back, that he'd've probably have gone to the Nether. I crafted a portal to the Nether and waited outside it, after destroying the other one. But he never came back. He was accused of being a monster. From what I gathered, Luigi has been shunned. It's most likely that they've been controlled by... someone."

"The Ex," chorused the other three.

"Yeah," said Notch, and he smiled grimly. "I wish I could help him. I wish I could destroy the bastards and bitches that did this to my brother. But I can't do it alone, without help. Mario could help me. I'm sure he feels the same way. And..."

His grimace grew wider.

"...I'm sure you three could help as well."

"Sure we could!" grinned Raven, before L and Dimentio could open their mouths.

"If the Count allows," said Mr. L, shrugging. "I can't say no to adventure."

"I'll stick with my friends, thank you very much," muttered Dimentio.

"Sweet of ya," smirked Raven, punching Dimentio on the shoulder gently.

"That hurt," snapped Dimentio.

Notch laughed and clapped his hands together. "So! First thing's first. Could you please get this freaking barrier outta my face?"

Mr. L and Raven laughed. Dimentio smirked and clicked his fingers, so the shimmering barrier disappeared.

Stepping outside, Notch drew his sword. "So," he said, "where to first?"

"To the minion orientation room," said L, holding the door open, "to ask the Count's permission."

"Afterwards, if Count says yes, we'll go to Peach's and get Mario," added Raven.

"Do we have to?" sighed L.

"Yes," snapped Dimentio.

Notch laughed, savouring the moment. It would be some time before he laughed again.


	7. Six Heroes

Raven twirled her spear happily. The shaft was made of sleek shining oak, and the pointed head glinted with magic. The tip was razor-sharp, and had almost cut Dimentio's head off.

"That is a pretty kick-ass weapon," commented Notch.

"I know, right?" grinned Raven. She examined the head, interested, then suddenly directed it at Dimentio's head and shot a golden ray of light at him. Yelping, he dodged the surprise attack. When he came up, the tips of his hat were blackened and smoking.

"Not funny," he grumbled.

"Soooo... when's Mr. Jumpsallthetime coming?" smirked Mr. L, who was leaning against the trunk of a tree, his arms folded.

"Mr. Whonow?" said Notch, frowning.

"Mario," supplied Dimentio.

"Ah," said Notch, grinning sheepishly. "Well, to be honest, he should be here now."

Raven continued to gaze at her spear, then suddenly spoke. "I'm gonna call him Golden Courage!"

"What," said L.

"GC for short," explained Raven.

"Who names their weapon?" demanded Notch.

Raven shrugged. "I knew a few people."

Mr. L interrupted their conversation. "Sorry to break up this mother's meeting, but the Portly Plumber of Pasta is coming."

Three other heads turned. There, true as day, was Mario Vyn, walking towards the foursome with a determined expression on his face.

He was not, however, alone.

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF GRAMBI'S SOGGY LEFT BUTTOCK IS _SHE _DOING HERE?"

Daisy Sarasa was glaring at Mr. L, who was no longer leaning against a tree like no-one's business, but was straight-backed and angry, his eyes narrowed and his fists clenched and surrounded by electricity.

Raven laid her spear on L's shoulder. "Calm down, Elly."

"Don't you tell me to CALM FREAKING DOWN!" yelled Mr. L, throwing Golden Courage off of him. "That... that BITCH isn't going to be coming with us, no WAY!"

"Luigi is my boyfriend, you bastard!" snapped Daisy, who was already being restrained by Mario. "And just cuz you're some stupid, fake, cowardly parody of him doesn't mean you get to boss me around like no-one's sweet-ass business!"

"Who ARE you, anyway?" interrupted Notch, before the argument could get any more out of control.

"Meet Daisy Sarasa, princess of Sarasaland," introduced Dimentio with a sly little bow.

"I'm here to rescue my boyfriend!" announced Daisy grandly.

"Who is?" asked Notch.

"Luigi," supplied Mario tonelessly.

"This is pretty awesome!" grinned Raven. "We have six people on a grand quest to rescue the brothers of some of the greatest heroes of all time!"

_Only Raven Avi Featherclaw could say those exact words without a hint of sarcasm, _Mario thought.

"It's kinda like the Mane Six from My Little Pony," continued Raven, as they turned to return to the Castle, leaving Misery Forest behind. "I'm the weirdo in the group, so I'm Pinkie Pie! L's the arrogant flier, and so he's Rainbow Dash. Dimentio's the purple magician, so HE'S Twilight Sparkle. Which just leaves Applejack, Fluttershy and Rarity! Mario's the hardworker, so he's AJ, Notch is kinda shy-ish around Toads and stuff, so he's Fluttershy, and Daisy is Rarity purely cuz she's the one left."

"I'm ready to bet that you didn't understand a word of that," smirked Mario to Notch. The latter shook his head.

* * *

Their pockets were filled with supplies, Notch had rounded up his pets, L was equipped with a few of his own invented weapons, Dimentio's magic was at its strongest, Daisy had borrowed an iron sword off Notch, Mario's Firebrand ability was working perfectly, and Raven had figured out how to control various elements with Golden Courage.

They were ready.

"So where's the first stop?" asked Raven, twirling GC as L strapped on a special custom belt.

"We're off to Peach's Castle," replied Mario, making a few smoke rings blow out of his index finger.

"To?" asked Raven, watching L slip a ray-gun into one of the holsters with a bored expression.

"To question her highness Princess Peach Toadstool like... like... um..." Dimentio frowned for a minute, then shrugged. "Oh, whatever. I'm too tired for similes."

"Course, Mr. Firefleabag just wants to check Toadstool out," smirked Mr. L, tipping his hat.

"Oh, shut up," snapped Mario, making Notch laugh.

"We going now?" said Daisy, folding her arms and fingering her new sword.

"Sure," chorused the others, and followed the tomboy princess out the door.

* * *

"Marching along the winding track, never scared, never looking back!"

"Marching along the winding track, away, away we go!"

"Marching along the winding track, on an adventure, defend and attack!"

"Marching along the winding track, we were scared long ago!"

The old Endontian folk song echoed down the hallway. Luigi and Herobrine stared straight ahead, their eyes blank. The latter's eyes glowed scarlet. A voice issued from the shadows, a voice like a snake's hiss that dripped with evil.

"What have you discovered?"

Herobrine bowed his head, his eyes casting shadows on the wall. "Master, there is nothing of interest to be noted in Peach's Castle. The Toad structures they call houses are flimsy and weak. Flint and steel, once broken from its standard icon-like state, can easily take care of them."

The voice chuckled. "Very good. Just what I wanted to hear. And, Luigi...?"

"The guards are weak and can easily be taken down," droned Luigi. "Master," he added hastily.

"As I surmised," hissed the voice. "You please me, Herobrine and Luigi. Feel free to roam around the Shadow Castle at your leisure."

At these words, the voice seemed to melt into nothing. The two younger brothers immediately dropped their poker-stiff act and turned to face each other as they exited.

"This is great!" exclaimed Herobrine happily, his eyes dulling to a light pink. "We have power!"

"YOU have power, at least," grumbled Luigi. "No-one's seen me except for some dunderhead guards."

"Don't worry," assured Herobrine, his eyes falling back into a scarlet. "I'm sure your time will come."

And at that, Luigi couldn't stop smiling.


	8. At Bowser's Castle

Walking through the halls of Bowser's Castle, where the heat licked at your skin and somehow managed to chill you to the bone, Mario felt both distinctly awkward and defiantly determined. With his brother's alter-ego and a psychotic jester trailing behind him, the red-clad plumber did not wish to show any feeling.

"Where are we?" asked Notch.

"Bowser's Castle," replied Daisy. "It's where the King of Koopas, King Bowser, lives." Unlike Mario, Daisy managed to be patient when it came to Notch's limited knowledge of the Kingdom. Having known the place since childhood, Mario felt annoyed whenever Notch asked a question about the most obvious things.

Leading them to Bowser's throne room was Kamek. The aged Magikoopa may not have been as skilled in the magical arts as Dimentio, but he still had the knack, and therefore posed a threat. Mario was intent on protecting Raven, the most vulnerable member of the group.

Or so it appeared, anyway.

"I don't see why we need Mr. Scalefail to help us find your brothers," scoffed Mr. L, his wings stretched out to balance him as he walked with his hands behind his head.

"We told you, there's been rumours that Bowser has some sort of portal to the Underwhere," snapped Daisy impatiently. "If anyone can tell us where Luigi and Herobrine are, it's Queen Jaydes."

"How d'you know all about this stuff?" asked Raven brightly. "You aren't one of the Heroes of Light, anyway."

"Peach told me," said Daisy curtly, dismissing the question.

Raven shrugged and twirled her spear a bit. Mario eyed the blade apprehensively. He didn't appreciate the carefree way Raven treated bladed weapons. He was thinking of snatching away her spear when Kamek came to an abrupt halt.

"Ah," said Dimentio, "have we finished our little journey?"

"His Mightiness is just beyond these doors," explained Kamek, waving a clawed hand towards the handsome oak doors. "Please treat His Temperness with respect. Otherwise, you may find him to be a bit... difficult."

He opened the door with a wave of his scepter, and the other six trooped inside.

The throne room of Bowser's Castle was set out similarly to Peach's. High ceiling, tapestries, grand throne in the middle, silk carpet leading up to it, flags emblazoned with the kingdom's symbol fluttering at every corner.

Bowser's bulk filled the throne, his scaly arms crossed, his hair unkempt. The spikes on his bands gleamed ominously, and his shell loomed over his figure, making him look much more evil.

"These _drain__-brains _need my help to find their loser brothers, then?" growled Bowser, once Kamek had shut the door behind them.

"Don't call us drain-brains, Koop-breath!" countered L.

"Don't push it, big-nose," sneered Bowser. He blew a thin stream of fire at Notch's face, who ducked just in time.

"Who's the newbies?" demanded Bowser, indicating Notch and Raven.

"Hi!" said Raven, waving the hand with the spear. "Name's Raven!"

Bowser eyed the spear before turning to Mario. "So whaddaya want, red-head? My help? Thousands of troops at your command?"

"No," said Mario, carefully. "We need your portal to the Underwhere."


	9. Jaydes's Secretary

_Author's Note: I'm pretty sure the last chapter was about four-hundred words too short. Will make it up in this chapter!_

The portal was fashioned curiously. It was a hexagonal shape, but set in the wall of Bowser's secret chamber, and appeared to be more of a hole than a portal to hell. The particles emitting from its depths were Nether-portal-like, but the actual visible interior was like that of the Void.

"Here ya go," grunted Bowser. "One ticket to hell. What else d'you drain-brains want?"

"Will we be able to get back?" questioned Notch. He had complete faith in Mario, but not so much in the scaly smelly Koopa standing before him.

"I dunno," shot back Bowser. "You may be dense enough to be deluded into risking your lives, but I'm smart enough not to go anywhere _near _this Grambiforsaken thing."

"Smart? YOU?" Mr. L actually began to laugh loudly and openly at this, but at the sight of Bowser waving his scepter and claws threateningly, his mirth soon died down.

Mario was silently examining the portal while Daisy battered Dimentio with dimensional-related questions.

"Are you sure it'll work?"

"Positive."

"Will it one-hundred-percent take us to the Underwhere."

"Most likely."

"Is there a way back?"

"Maybe."

"Can't you teleport us out?"

"I'm afraid I can't."

"Why not?"

"I am a magician, not a miracle worker."

"You suck."

"Well, so do you, my darling."

Meanwhile, Raven was hopping excitedly on Mario's head (as a crow, of course), annoying the red-clad hero to no end. Golden Courage was propped up on the wall.

"Whatcha doin'? Ooh, are we going IN this portal? Where're we going? Will we save Luigi and Herobrine? Is that Herobrine's name? Cuz if Herobrine wasn't Herobrine, he wouldn't BE Herobrine! Haha! Does that make any sense? Oh, speaking of sense, have you ever mixed up 'sense' with 'spice'? I have once, and I asked for extra SENSE, not extra SPICE. Man, I'm such a silly!"

As Raven jabbered on, Mario ran a gloved hand above the portal. Maybe it was a fault of his own, maybe it was the portal's will, but in a purple flash of light and a loud humming noise, Mario and Raven were sucked into the portal.

Mr. L, Daisy, Notch and Dimentio whirled around.

"HOLY CRAP!" shrieked Daisy.

"What the Ender happened?" demanded Notch, drawing his sword.

"Whatever happened, it wasn't my fault!" yelled Mr. L, flapping his wings in a panic.

"Everyone, SHUT UP!" roared Dimentio.

In all the confusion, no-one saw Bowser sneak out, fast and silent. No-one heard the lock turn in the doorknob. And no-one managed to catch a snippet of Bowser's triumphant laugh.

"Where the crap is Bowser?" said Daisy, in the abrupt silence.

Mr. L and Notch looked at the door. "The bastard probably snuck out, while we were arguing," mused L.

"How could a monster that size sneak out?" asked Notch to virtually no-one.

Daisy walked over to the door and tried, to no avail, to open it. "Shit!" she hissed. "That sonofabitch locked us in!"

"Never fear, my dearest Daisy," sang Dimentio. "I shall teleport us out of this woe... with magic!"

Dimentio clicked his fingers. Everyone tensed expectantly.

Nothing happened.

"Ah oh," said Dimentio.

"I guess you can make places magic-proof, right?" said Notch.

"Precisely, Notchy boy," muttered L. "Which is why we're completely freaking screwed."

* * *

Mario felt sharp rocks beneath him. With a groan, he forced himself up on his feet, and looked around at the sole place he had wished with all his heart he would never lay eyes on again.

The Underwhere.

A desolate wind blew through the damned place, and Shaydes and D-Men wandered aimlessly around. Mario looked around on the sharp-rock ground, and spotted a jet-black crow amidst the grey. He scooped Raven up, and was almost immediately greeted by a D-Man. This one was a suit-wearing D-Man, but his suit was a strange combination of orange and blue.

"Hey," he said.

"Um, hi," said Mario.

The D-Man scrutinised Mario carefully. "Gotta admit, I think I've spotted your moustache floatin' 'round here. You dead?" he added sharply.

"Ah, no," replied Mario. "Y'see, I'm on business."

"With Queen Jaydes?" asked the D-Man.

"Yep," said Mario.

"Cool," said the D-Man. He held out a hand. "Name's D-Dude. I'm the new secretary of her Deadliness Queen Jaydes."

"Deadliness?" repeated Mario.

"Yup-a-doodle," said D-Dude smugly. "Now, c'mon. She's relocated into a fortress thing."

Confused, Mario followed the bizzarly-coloured secretary towards River Twygz. After a few minutes of dull walking, where Mario had overhead a few Shaydes chatting calmly about their deaths, the duo came across the wizened ferry-keeper, Charold.

Charold waved. "Hi," he greeted the two.

"People down here have become less spooky," reflected Mario.

"Nice, ain't it?" agreed D-Dude. "There's a little campaign going around, niceness and stuff. Anyhoozits, we need to cross the River, Char."

Charold nodded. "Four coins, please."

Mario brought out four coins, albeit quite unwillingly. Once they were on the ferry, Mario addressed D-Dude.

"Why can't we just swim across?"

"Reinforced poisonous riverwater," answered D-Dude. "We haven't been able to get enough crying evildoers, so we've settled for the common poison."

Mario eyed the River with new eyes.

* * *

"Are you sure Raven won't mind?" asked Daisy, as Mr. L picked up Golden Courage and examined it interestedly.

"What she doesn't know can't hurt her," replied L. "Or us, for that matter. Now stand back, guys. Don't wanna catch fire or something."

The other three backed away, nearly touching the portal. L raised the spear and pointed it at the door.

**BAM.**

Notch and Dimentio ran (or flew) forwards. The gentleman thief was bound by ropes that had exploded (almost literally) out of the tip of Golden Courage's tip. He was struggling with the binds, and therefore had dropped the spear.

"I don't think we should try that anytime soon," said Notch dryly, as he slashed through the vines with a pair of shears.

"May I ask why you are carrying shears around with you?" asked Dimentio politely.

Notch shrugged. "They're my favourite tool."

"Alright," sighed Daisy, running a hand through her hair. "We can't get out, with teleportation or forceful escape."

"Which leaves?" asked Mr. L, brushing off the vines.

Daisy looked grimly at the portal. "That."


	10. Welcome to the Underwhere, Notchy Boy

"Are you sure that this is a good idea?"

"No."

Notch glared at Mr. L as the latter picked up Golden Courage again and tested its weight once more. Dimentio floated around the portal in interest, while Daisy drew a penknife from Grambi knows where. She slid the blade out of its hiding place in the tool and swung it a few times to get used to it.

Drawing his diamond sword, Notch looked at the portal. "Ladies first."

Daisy stuck out her tongue at the Minecraftian and stepped inside the portal. There were a few funny swirling sounds as Daisy disappeared as though she had stepped through a waterfall. Dimentio floated in next, quickly followed by Mr. L, and finally Notch.

Exactly Grambi knows how many seconds later, Notch opened his eyes and saw a horribly distorted landscape.

The sky was an icky blue-purple, and scattered with strange neon rectangles that Notch could only assume were the substitutes this place offered for clouds. Mountains and rocky landscapes loomed in the distance. Stalactites and stalagmites hung from the high rocky ceiling, and strange black-and-white creatures made out of floating squares wandered aimlessly around.

Notch looked to his right and saw a fountain spewing orange liquid. He was shocked to see Mr. L grumbling to himself as he let the liquid run over his hand, which was covered in cuts. As Notch watched, the cuts healed over, leaving nary a notion behind.

"Wh-what the..." stammered Notch.

"Healing fountain thing," replied Mr. L curtly, withdrawing his suddenly-dry hand. "You're the first other one I've seen so far."

"What the heck d'you mean by that?" demanded Notch, hurrying to Mr. L's side.

"Haven't seen anyone hauling their ass around here 'cept for me and those Shaydes," muttered L, indicating the strange black-and-white creatures. "Gotta admit, living here for eternity must be shitty."

"It looks spooky," said Notch.

Mr. L snorted as he suddenly set off, Notch hurrying to keep up. "Notchy, Notchy, Notchy. This place is more like Boredom Central. Queen Jaydes is the real bitch around here. Scarier than the scenery by far."

"Who's Queen Jaydes?" asked Notch.

"Keep forgetting how much ya don't know, Notchy," exclaimed L. "Jaydes is kinda like our equivalent of the Devil. Or more accurately Hades."

"So where're the others? And where the crap've you been?"

"Looking for Jaydes," replied L. "She's probably relocated, so I settled for looking for you guys. We obviously ended up in completely different places."

Notch felt the back of his head and was shocked to find a large bruise underneath his fingers. "So where're we going now?"

"River Twygz," answered the masked man, pointing to the distance. "See that ferry dude? That's Charold, the dude who lets people down here cross for a fee of four freaking coins. Four! What a rip-off. He doesn't earn much, though."

"What did he do to get down here?" muttered Notch, eying the purple water that was undoubtedly poisonous and the blue-skinned being in orange who was manning the ferry.

"Well, I personally have no idea," replied L. "Still, though, Bonechill's Prison is the real Hell. This place is for the guys who haven't really been good OR bad."

"Interesting," said Notch untruthfully. "Um, are we swimming over?"

"Shit no," said Mr. L, rummaging in his pockets for some coins. "They've changed it to poison, instead of the tears of bad guys. 'Sides, I don't wanna mess with the Underhands."

Notch decided to keep his trap shut as Mr. L handed Charold four coins. The guy yawned and beckoned them on. Notch and Mr. L clambered onto the rickety ferry, and Charold struck out from the dock.

"This place gives me the mega-creeps," admitted Notch.

"At least you haven't been down here more than once," grumbled Mr. L, looking out at the scenery.

Notch looked at the masked man, surprised. "You've been here?"

"First time was when I was killed by Dimentio, second time was when I had to sacrifice myself for my friends, third time was when I was murdered by Dimentio again, fourth time when I died on an adventure with the Pure Hearts. This is my sixth."

"Wow."

* * *

Mario looked up in alarm at the stone castle hewn straight from a giant mountain unconveniately in their way. D-Dude nodded appreciatively at the plumber's awe. Of course, I don't exactly blame Mario, seeing as the castle was all grey walls and blackened windows and arching doors and spiralling towers and swarming Shaydes and stuff.

"Impressive," admitted Mario.

"Thanks," said D-Dude. "We try our hardest."

D-Dude led Mario into the castle, which was filled with Shaydes. The D-Man led Mario to the throne room, where Jaydes was sitting on a stone throne looking frazzled, while about a dozen other D-Men in suits swarmed around her. D-Dude raised his voice.

"Clear out, lads, clear out. Mario's here to see Her Royal Deadliness."

Immediately, the D-Men dispersed, muttering to themselves. Jaydes looked up gratefully at D-Dude.

"Thanks, D," murmured the Underwhere ruler. "I thought I was going to scream if they kept at it for a second longer."

Jaydes cleared her throat and straightened up. "So! Mario. Hey. Nice to see you, and all."

"You too, Queen Jaydes," said Mario, not altogether truthfully.

"Nervous? Yeah, I know. On business again?" Jaydes talked in a tired manner, even though her words were sharp and snappy.

"Um, yeah. You see, it's kinda a long story, but basically this guy from another dimension called Minecraftia ended up in our world and apparently he needs help finding his brother and I need the same, so we went to Bowser's place for a portal to here and he showed us but locked us in, and then - "

" - you got separated from your friends," finished Jaydes.

"Uh, yeah," said Mario sheepishly. "But I still have Raven!"

And he drew out the still-unconsicous crow.

Jaydes peered at her for a bit. Then, she sank back into her throne. "Tell me everything about her."


	11. Aldawolves and Action

Mr. L slashed away at the dense Underwhere leaves as he led Notch to the fortress. He agreed with the Minecraftian about the safety of said fortress, but it was shelter, and after all, it was better than nothing.

Besides, what Mr. L really wanted to do was see his friends again. Notch was okay, but really? The guy could use a bit more Mushroom Region knowledge. The engineer was about to sigh to himself when he was interrupted by a snarling sound to his left.

And right.

Mr. L raised Golden Courage high above his head. He saw Notch ready into a battle pose and stow away his bow, the diamond blade glinting. L looked around frantically, and felt his insides twist as he saw aldawolf after aldawolf lurk out of the trees.

They were just like wolves, but with elongated, arrow-tipped tails. Their eyes were an unnatural glowing silver, and each one had a slimy purple tongue, razor-sharp teeth and leathery bat wings. Definitely not normal.

"What the Ender ARE those things?" hissed Notch, as the two men went back-to-back.

"Shadow aldawolves," answered back Mr. L in an undertone. "We can't hurt them without fire, it's the only thing they're scared of."

"Fire?"

At the sound of 'fire', the pack lunged. L swiftly turned and dodged the oncoming array of teeth and claws, while Notch deflected the steel tails with his sword.

Mr. L leapt up into the air and spread his wings. He soared over the chaos and grabbed Notch by the arms. He yanked, and Notch was carried up into the sky with him.

Big mistake.

As Notch's sword slipped from his grip and clattered on to the ground, the aldawolves around them took flight silently. They were black blurs, hurtling towards Mr. L with all the speed of a runaway train.

But Mr. L was as fast as Rainbow Dash in flight. And Dash was way faster than a runaway train.

L zipped off in a green-black blur, Notch clinging on for dear life. The Minecraftian screamed in terror as Mr. L swerved and dodged tree branches. He steadily gained altitude, and soon they were far ahead of the wolves. Only then did Mr. L slow down to a steady beating of the air.

"Never," panted Notch, "ever, ever, EVER, do that again."

"Chicken," smirked L.

Notch sighed after checking his pockets. "I don't have another sword on me. I've got my bow, but I was never a bowman. D'you think you could land someplace safe and private?"

"Sure," said Mr. L, and descended ever so slowly to the ground. Notch dug into his pockets and drew out a miniature spinning Crafting Table. He set it down on the floor, and it grew to its regular size.

"Slick," said Mr. L appreciatively. "How'd ya do that?"

Notch shrugged before digging out two diamonds and a stick. He set it down in the standard sword-crafting fashion, and the ghost of a diamond sword appeared over the Table. He took it, and the materials vanished as the sword materialised.

"Interesting," said L. "Ve-e-e-ery interesting. Now let's go."

"Hang on," interrupted Notch. He reached into his pockets once more and brought out a few pieces of dirt. He set them down in a three-block-tall tower, one piece facing towards the opposite direction they were going.

"Now we know our way back," he announced.

Mr. L shook his head. "Notchy, you may be smart and all, but Grambi murder me if I'd ever bother to do THAT. You've got patience."

"Thanks," said Notch. "But, really, I could've used a torch. I just wanted to get rid of that dirt clogging up my pockets."

"Each to his own," remarked L. "Right, then, let's move."

Notch nodded and followed the engineer towards the ever-present fortress.

* * *

Mario and D-Dude stood on the roof of the fortress. Mario watched the last of the fireworks sizzle into nothingness, then began applauding appreciatively.

"Jolly good show, old chap!" he remarked in a British accent.

"Hey, thanks," said D-Dude. "We do try our hardest. Now let's go and consult Her Deadliness and check out what the shit's going on with this stuff."

"Don't swear," warned Mario.

"Why?" shot back D-Dude. "I do what I please, whether or not I fear Jaydes to the very marrow."

"Well, I don't like swearing," said Mario. "Reminds me of when Mum and Dad used to - "

Mario broke off immediately. D-Dude shot him a curious look, then shrugged. "Personal matters, red-head?"

The plumber cast his eyes down. He refused to reply, and D-Dude got his vibes. He sped up, giving Mario a bit of space to himself, and just to _think_.

* * *

Daisy groaned and ran a frustrated hand through her hair. Her wanderings had gotten her NOWHERE in this Grambi-for-saken place, and Jaydes help her if she had been going around in circles.

The flower princess dusted herself down. This adventure was turning out to be total balls, and it didn't help that she was stranded in a place she only knew about one-percent of.

Daisy decided to continue walking, the leafy fronds brushing against her. She assumed she was in some sort of forest, but this forest really gave her the creeps. There seemed to be something stalking her. Something like... animals. Predators. Dragons? No... wolves?

Daisy gulped. She began twisting her fingers together, and adjusted the crown on her head that pronounced her as royalty. She was starting to panic as much as the reason she had come on this adventure. Luigi.

Not exactly, but Daisy continued walking purposefully. She held her head high, and did her best to ignore the constant feeling of stalker-ness that... stalked her... through the stalky... er... forest...

Yeah, I'm losing my touch.


	12. Evil Afoot

_Author's Note: H-hey guys. Sorry for the super-late update... Had a severe case of writer's block. But I'm back now (hopefully)!  
_

"Well, well, well..."

The lead aldawolf stumbled back into the clearing, his head drooping.

"We tried our best, sire - "

"SILENCE!" roared the other aldawolf. He was sitting on a throne made of bones, shrouded in shadows. His deep purple eyes glowed out of the darkness, and his scarlet tongue licked his long, yellowed fangs slowly, obscenely.

The lead aldawolf seemed to shrink. He whimpered and let his ears flop down, his tail and wings closing in around him.

"You are lucky that I am in a good mood today, Kyro, otherwise you would be dead by now," hissed the aldawolf that the other addressed as 'sire'. "Now, send a request from me, the Underwolf, to the Underwhere dragon king. Tell him I need, and would appreciate, a fleet of his finest men to be at my brief disposal, in order to exterminate these unwanted, ah, _guests_. Is that clear?"

"C-crystal, sire."

"Good," hissed the Underwolf, flicking his tail. "Now... off you go..."

* * *

Daisy groaned. This place sucked BALLS.

The THINGS here weren't helpful OR happy. In fact, Daisy doubted they even knew the word's meaning. No, they just loped around and droned about their own sorry pitiful death. It grated on her nerves, especially when they gave her the evil eye for interrupting their death talks.

"Uh, excuse me sir, do you - ?"

"Not now," hissed yet another pissed Shayde. "I'm telling this guy how I died."

"How?" said Daisy sarcastically. "Fell down a bottomless cliff? Jumped on a spike?"

"No," the other said indignantly. "It was a Lakitu who did it."

Daisy rolled her eyes and face-palmed, before moving off. They were so DULL. She wondered what Luigi was doing. Then, wave after wave of fear struck her.

Was he okay? Was he being hurt? Would he recognise her? If he was brainwashed, was he fighting it? WAS he brainwashed? Daisy shuddered at the thoughts.

In fact, she was so peoccupied, she didn't even notice the ferry she almost ran head-first into.

"GAH!" The princess withdrew, rubbing her head, and gazing up to a slightly-elevated old man holding a staff or stick of sorts. He waved.

"Now what kinda pretty lady like you's doing down here?" he asked, baring a toothless grin.

Daisy shuddered at the nauseating sight. "Er, I'm just here to find my boyfriend. Um, and friends. Yeah."

The ferryman chuckled weakly. "I'm Charold. Got any coinssss? Four, if you wanna get to the other side."

Daisy looked at the harmless-looking, albeit strangely-coloured water. "N-no thanks. Um, I'll just swim."

Charold chuckled again. "Don't reccomend that, lil' lady. That's poissson."

The flower princess frowned at Charold. What was with the occasional descent into lisping? She shook it off and dug into her pocket.

Her empty pocket.

Daisy swore, and looked up at Charold. He was sneering creepily at her. Daisy stepped back, and was already half-running away from the ferryman when she yelled over her shoulder, "Sorry, no coins here!"

Charold snickered. Cute girl. But no brains, that was for sure.

* * *

"Daisy's smart," said Luigi dreamily, "and she's... great. Athletic, sporty, strong, loyal, _cute_..."

Herobrine snorted at his friend's lovestruck state. They were in the Nether, on a quest their master had sent them on. Luigi still had trouble getting his tongue around the word "master", but Herobrine was fine with it. Besides, they were in the _Nether_. Brine's favourite place.

Of course, that didn't really apply to Luigi. The first time they had appeared here, he had screamed like a girl and hid from the pigmen. Herobrine had had to force him into the portal, and even then Luigi had fought. He was strong.

Surprisingly.

Well, that was neither here nor there, Herobrine mused, as he mined netherrack continuously. He had brought along a bit of wood, and had made a makeshift chair for Luigi to sit on while he jabbered on about his _love_. To be frank, Herobrine quite liked romance. Not the gushy kind of stuff, however. The nice... subtle kind, as it were.

_If I had my own love..._

Well, what would Herobrine be then? Not a monster, for one. Maybe recognised as the true brother of the almighty Notch. But that would never happen. These brotherhood issues were far too... well, he didn't know. Common, maybe? Mario and Luigi. Thor and Loki. Calder and Scale. Notch and him.

But if it had all been different...

_If I had my own love,  
She would be fine.  
Smart, courageous and strong.  
She would have beauty never seen by the likes of men._

_If I had my own love,_  
_So happy I would be._  
_We'd run and play from dusk till dawn and then..._

"We've known each other since we were kids!"

Luigi's overly-happy voice suddenly broke into Herobrine's icy thoughts. The white-eyed Minecraftian jerked upwards, hand flying to his sword instinctively. When he caught sight of Luigi's suddenly pale face, he quickly let his hand relax.

"S-sorry," he apologised. "Y-you startled me. That's all."

"Startled..." Luigi repeated faintly. "S-startled _you_?!"

Herobrine then couldn't help - with the aid of one more glance at the plumber's face - but to burst out laughing. And, for a time, that was all Luigi could get out of the young man. Unceasing, continuous, uncontrollable laughter. Tears of mirth streamed down his face, and Luigi began to grow scared.

No-one could laugh for so long...

And then he caught sight of Herobrine's face, almost split in half by his grin. His bright, gleeful, crazy, insane grin. Luigi got up from his kneeling position immediately, staggering back. Herobrine's eyes suddenly began to darken. Red pinpricks appeared in their depths, and he suddenly flew up into the air, just... _hovering_.

And then Herobrine drew his obsidian sword, his left hand engulfed in twisting, burning flames. And the flames shot forwards and took him.


	13. The Prognostici

_Author's Note: ...I hate hiatus._

* * *

Well, things weren't exactly going great so far.

Daisy swore venemously as she loooked aimlessly around. Where the hell was she? She had never felt this lost back in Sarasaland, not even in the Mushroom Kingdom. The flower princess ran a hand through her hair as she blew out a long sigh. If only Luigi was here...

Suddenly, there came a wolf-like howling from behind Daisy, amongst the trees. The princess whirled around and reached into her pocket. She brought out an amber-coloured penknife and flipped open its blade. It wasn't much, but it was better than fighting with just her fists against what sounded like a giant pack of hounds baying for blood.

Daisy held up her hands and put her weight on her back leg, like her martial arts lessons had taught her. She backed away slowly, for she knew that wolves had heightened senses. And these ones sounded dangerous.

And then suddenly a jet-black canine burst out of the trees, followed by dozens more. Daisy struck out instinctively, jabbing her knife deep into the wolf's eye before throwing it off and whirling around. Her long hair whipped behind her. Stab stab stab, blood everywhere. Everything was a blur, wolves being thrown off only to be replaced by three more.

But she felt no pain. No razor-sharp teeth digging into her. No claws slashing across her face. They were just... launching at her. Distracting her, maybe? From what?

And then something clamped across her ankle. She screamed, twisting in her urge to get free. But then she felt something tugging. Her captor! She lashed out with her blade, but the wolves were already dispersing. She looked down at her captor, but she was already being tugged ferociously. Then there was a crack at the back of her head, and searing pain.

The last thing she saw before blacking out was some sort of fortress clinging to a cliff.

* * *

A knock echoed through the castle. Fortress. Thing.

Mario's head lurched upwards. D-Dude whirled around, one hand still on the door handle to Jaydes's quarters. Then, he said in a low voice, "Stay here."

Mario watched D-Dude run - with surprising speed - back the way they had came. He battled with himself, cursing himself for his indecision. Then, he let his heroes' instinct take over and ran after the secretary.

"Hey! D-Dude! Wait up!"

Skirting around a corner, Mario caught a flash of orange and blue before the secretary disappeared around the corner. Mario put on a burst of speed and rounded the corner expertly. He then came to an abrupt halt as he saw the main door, wide open, with D-Dude conversing with...

Notch and Mr L.

Mario saw L's eyes widen, then saw a grin spread across his face. The asshole waved.

"Hey there, fatso!" called the engineer. Mario fumed, and saw Notch stifle a laugh. However, the plumber couldn't help but smile slightly at the proof of his friends' survival.

D-Dude looked from Mr. L to Mario to Notch and back. After about three more rounds of this, the secretary sighed and ushered the two in.

"Friends of heroes are aquaintances of mine," he said grimly, shutting the gigantic door behind them with a snap. He then pushed the two along the hallway, Notch's diamond blade glinting.

"So... um... who exactly are you?" asked Notch, as D-Dude took the lead.

"D-Dude, m' friend," answered the D-Man. "Secretary of Her Deadliness, Queen Jaydes."

Notch paled. "Ah, Jaydes? As in... the Queen of the Underwhere Jaydes?"

"Oh yeah," smirked Mr. L, putting on a cocky grin. "Can't _wait _for _you _to meet her, Notchy!"

D-Dude's drawling tone interrupted their conversation. "Don't worry, kiddo. Guy. Adult. Whatever. Jaydes is fine enough as she is, trust me."

Notch shook his head bemusedly, then adjusted his fedora absent-mindedly. He looked at Mario and Mr. L, then frowned slightly.

"Why is headwear so popular around here?"

The other two looked at each other and shrugged.

"Well, those Toads and Toadettes really do enjoy their mushroom caps," murmured Mario.

"And I've never seen ol' pasta-downer here without his hat," added L.

Mario shot the cocky engineer a furious glance.

Notch laughed. It was a bit shaky, a bit forced, but mostly sincere nonetheless. Before anyone could continue the meagre conversing, however, D-Dude interrupted them.

"Welp, here we are."

* * *

The door was, admittedly, small. The size of a wooden door. In fact, it resembled a wooden door. Heck, it _was _a wooden door. Notch gazed at the familiar and homely sight wtih a gaping mouth. Of course, it wasn't of Minecraftian design, but it was close.

Suddenly there was a lurch of homesickness. How long had it been since he had heard the squawk of a chicken? The bleat of a sheep? The mooing and snorting of cows and pigs? Maybe even just the hiss of a creeper would have satisfied.

Notch shook away these feelings furiously. He was in the Mushroom Kingdom, now, wasn't he? And Brine, his younger brother, _his _very own sibling...

They needed to rescue him.

D-Dude reached out a hand and opened the door.

* * *

The walls were purple. Painted. Or maybe they had come like that. Ah, well.

Black drapes hung from the ceiling, casting a gloomy, depressing air around the gigantic, cavernous purple space. The corners were darker than the blackest heart. There was a stand in the middle of a room, facing the door, much like a stand you see in church, or maybe at a wedding. Or funeral, might be a fitting term.

On this Queen Jaydes leant on. It was fashioned to fit one book. One normal-sized book. And there were three hovering choices.

One, on the left, the black, ebony, blue-gemmed Dark Prognosticus. The right one, the pearly-white, gold-lined Light Prognosticus. And one in the middle, one that no-one, not even D-Dude, recognised.

A grey book, bound with leather, the shade of stormclouds. An emerald at each corner. An octagonal emerald as the centrepiece of the book's cover.

This, although no-one in the room knew its name, was the Grey Prognosticus.


End file.
